Wife Been Diagnosed

[graham71206]

Hello All, I will assume you have been asked this many times.
My wife suffered a rapid loss of sight recently which was put down to optic neuritis and has been told to expect MS. After 3 week her vision has return back to normal so all is good now. We are only a young couple who will want to start a family soon, so all of this has been a bit of a shock. The doctors don't like to explain how or what may happen, but i thought id ask what it means for the future from people who have experience this scenario.

[sllowe]

Hi Graham,

Thank you so much for trusting us to thoughts. I'm happy to hear your wife's vision has returned to normal.

Her risk of MS is increased if at the time of ON she has lesions. Here is an older, but good study article on it. You'll see on the discussion more detail given by a retired doctor (who also has MS) who put the study info into better prospective for us when I initially posted the info. She's not on the forum any longer, however, you can count on her info as solid.

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Multiple-Sclerosis/MULTIPLE-SCLEROSIS-RISK-AFTER-OPTIC-NEURITIS/show/664930

You'll see from reading this, that it's not a given that your wife will develop MS, but that the odds increase on other things identified at the same time.

Hope this info helps - thanks for joining us! And, I wish you both well :)
-Shelly

[kwarendorf]

Hi Graham -

There is lots of scary MS related stuff out here in cyberspace. A significant portion of it is nonsense :-) For many of us, life with MS is rather normal.

I've had MS for going on 22 years. For 20 of those years I had no idea I had it! Now that I know, I take advantage of all the medical progress that has been made. This allows my life to remain rather normal :-)

Kyle

[graham71206]

THanks for the replies people, The internet is full of scary stuff when researching about this isnt it.

[Lulu54]

Graham, you have received some great replies here with helpful advice.Keep asking your questions and learn all you can about MS- it helps to take the mystery and fear out of this disease.  

Be sure to come back and let us know how we might help.
Laura

[HVAC]

I have had MS for 47 years. I live a normal life. I ride horse, do yoga, and walk my dogs. The MS has brought my husband and I closer together. We appreciate each other and support each other. No one can say what will happen with any illness especially MS. It all has to do with what nerve is effected. Sometimes a nerve is just inflamed and the symptoms go away other times it is nerve damage and the symptoms stay. They are making great advances in MS research all the time. There is a lot of hope. That is what you have to hang on to is the hope.

No one knows what tomorrow will bring for anybody regardless of current health. The main trick to being happy with MS is learning to adapt to whatever happens and to not project fears of what might happen onto the future.

Alex

[TLC_31]

A future with MS is very unpredictable, but we have many tools at our disposal to help steer it toward a more benign course. I was scared at diagnosis, but nine years later I’m still relatively healthy, with two children both born after diagnosis. My illness is not outwardly apparent, although I certainly notice annoyances over time.

Those tools at our disposal include a half-dozen disease-modifying drugs (DMDs), which are designed to slow the progression of disease and reduce intensity of relapses. I’ve hated the shots, and the side effects were troubling early in treatment, but it’s all better than relapses and progression. Now patients can choose from oral medications as well, although those can also have their downsides. I would caution you that not all of those DMDs are suitable for pregnant women.

In short, there is the potential for a bright future for you, your wife and your family. Ask questions anytime!

[msmomx2]

graham....welcome...just saying up front my prayers are with you both...I was your wife.  I had Optic nuritis as my first symptom and was diagnosed 4 days later in the hospital (it was really bad and I had a headach that put me in so much pain i could not speak)  I would just like to say have strength.  MS is NOT a death sentence and YES she can have children (as far as MS is concerned...not sure on any other issues you may be facing) (I have several MS friends who have had kids long after diagnosis).  Be very up front and open with eachother, love eachother like never before and things will hopefully work out for the best.  My kids are 5 &8 and I am sure I have had MS going on for well over 10 yrs.  

Be sure you write down your thoughts and questions and find an MS specific nurologist you both like who will answer your questions.

If she is indeed diagnosed.....I would also suggest seeing if your local MS society chapter has a "youger people" support group (I love our GO group in Milwaukee!)

Prayers for you.
Val